School's Out Carnival Brings Families Together

Families and children alike were able to enjoy the nice weather on June 9, to celebrate the beginning of the summer with the Children's Museum of Northeast Montana Third Annual School's Out Carnival. Originally scheduled for the last day of Glasgow schools on June 1, Mother Nature did not cooperate to allow the event to go on once students were released from school.

Children purchased tickets which allowed them to play a variety of carnival-style games including ring toss, color match, dart the balloon, among others. Just like a normal carnival, prize tickets were given away after completion of each game, which children were able to redeem inside of the Children's Museum.

S&K Doughnuts had a stand which allowed families to enjoy a nice treat while another stand sold shaved ice which allowed attendees to cool off. Once again Salsbury Brothers brought inflatable water slides, allowing children to bring out their bathing suits for the seasons and take a swoop down to cool off. According to Children's Museum board president Bethanie Knight, there were some additions to this year's carnival including a PTO booth, an extra slide brought by the Salsbury Brothers and more vendors than in previous years. "It was so great to see the community get more involved," said Knight.

The School's Out Carnival is one of the museum's biggest fundraising efforts. This year, the funds obtained from the carnival ticket sales will be used to continue to improve the upstairs of the museum. Grant funds recently helped pay for new flooring, and now the area is ready for further improvements such as shelving units.